


In Which the Authors Allow Their Characters to Have Drinks Without a Fight Ensuing

by morwen_of_gondor, Wishfulthinking1979



Series: O For A Muse Of Fire [4]
Category: Hornblower (TV), Hornblower - C. S. Forester, Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bar/Pub, Attempt at Humor, British Military, Crack, Crack Crossover, Epic Bromance, Epic Friendship, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Two of them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:27:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28390890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morwen_of_gondor/pseuds/morwen_of_gondor, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wishfulthinking1979/pseuds/Wishfulthinking1979
Summary: After their talk on dealing with difficult superiors, Piett, Veers, Bush, and Hornblower go for drinks at a pub the General knows.They really aren’t that different, despite the Wookiees.
Relationships: Firmus Piett & Horatio Hornblower, Firmus Piett & Maximilian Veers, Maximilian Veers & William Bush, William Bush & Horatio Hornblower
Series: O For A Muse Of Fire [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2060145
Comments: 26
Kudos: 11





	In Which the Authors Allow Their Characters to Have Drinks Without a Fight Ensuing

**Author's Note:**

> Exactly what it says on the tin. Which is something of a miracle really given who the authors are. 😉🙌  
> You realize we can make no promises for such peaceful content in future......

Veers led the way to one of the pubs he favored when he was forced to be on Coruscant. Neither he nor Piett were in any way fond of this planet and avoided it when they could. However, it was a mild evening, he was armed, Piett was at his side and they had two experienced (and tall!) officers with them. 

“Homeward Light, gentlemen,” he said, gesturing toward the building and allowing the two British officers to enter first.

He and Piett ducked in after them, removing their caps and Piett nodded approvingly.

“Have I been here before?” asked the Admiral.

“Not to my knowledge,” Veers responded, breathing in the comforting scents of numerous beers and something delicious cooking in the kitchen. 

This pub was run by Wookiees and the inner construction had been done using wood sourced from Kashyyk. Veers had a love for wood in any form and this had been beautifully polished in order to panel the walls and cover the floor in broad boards. It had a unique, somewhat spicy scent to it---almost like cloves, but not as strong. 

They made their way to the massive bar that lined one whole side of the room.

Hornblower and Bush relaxed visibly as they stepped into the wooden interior. This world of polished metal and stone was foreign to both of them and felt uncomfortably sterile, but this building might almost have come from a ship's interior. If ships smelled pleasantly of spices and were inhabited by eight-foot-tall...Hornblower tried and failed to find a noun both descriptive and polite. Mounds of hair was the closest he could come. Beside him Bush was looking at the personage behind the bar with very wide eyes.

Piett raised a hand to get the attention of the Wookiee bartender who came over, polishing a glass clearly meant for a being larger than themselves. Piett would consider that a bucket, and couldn’t think of a time he had or would ever consume that much alcohol in a sitting.

Veers saw Hornblower’s quizzical look and leaned over as Piett ordered. “This is a Wookiee, Admiral,” he murmured. “Allies in our conflict with the Empire and very brave warriors. Can be a bit touchy as well and capable of ripping arms off. So. Best not to offend them.”

Captain Bush's wide blue eyes went impossibly wider, though he managed to keep the rest of his face under control. Hornblower's eyebrows shot ceilingwards. "Are there any forms of address or other courtesies of which I should be aware?" he asked.

“Solo is the expert,” the General replied, “I haven’t worked all that much with them to be honest. Mostly I stick to be being polite and not making assumptions.”

"Noted," Hornblower replied, still sounding a little on edge.

“Veers?” Piett asked, “Ideas on what to order for our friends?”

“Favorite beers, gentlemen?” Veers asked.

Hornblower picked up a menu and squinted at the Aurebesh in bafflement. 

“Here,” commented Piett kindly, seeing this. “Describe your preferred beer and I’ll do my best to order an approximation for you.”

"Well, in the service, one learns not to be overly picky," Hornblower said wryly. "But I am partial to a good ale when I'm on shore."

"Stout's more in my line," Bush added. He had seen the face Hornblower made at the menu and not bothered with trying to read one.

“All right,” Piett nodded and finished placing the order with the Wookiee who huffed and yowled something as the Admiral pulled out his credits.

Both British officers started a little at the Wookiee's speech, but covered it admirably, though Bush could not conceal the curiosity written on his face. When the bartender stepped away to get their order, Hornblower turned to Piett to say, "You understand them? Is that the same language this" (he indicated the menu) "is written in?"

Piett shook his head. “That is called ‘basic’. He was speaking Shyriiwook and I know enough to know that he understood my order.”

"Shry-ee-wook?" Hornblower asked, trying out the unfamiliar word. "But that sounds nothing like the sounds he made."

Veers nodded. “Humans speaking it is not unheard of, but rare. We aren’t made to be physically capable of producing all the sounds they make.”

“Would you gentlemen care to find us a table?” Piett asked, “we can bring the drinks.”

The two officers stepped away from the bar, each making the gesture of touching his hat as he stepped away, though both of them had removed that part of the uniforms when they stepped inside, and selected a table which had clear lines of sight both to the doorway and the kitchen, where they sat down and proceeded to take in their surroundings with a little less reservation than before. Which is to say, they both did their best to stare at everything in the room without looking like it. "Well, Bush," Hornblower said after a few moments of silence, "what do you make of all this?"

"Feels like I'm inside of a tree, sir. Or on board a sailing pub. But I'd rather be here than outside. It's not natural for there to be no ground or sea in sight."

Hornblower laughed softly. "Now that's an idea," he said. "A sailing pub. The man who builds one first would have the thanks of the whole British navy."

"That he would, sir."

"But you're right that there's something odd about this...Coruscant. All white lights and no lamps, all stone and steel and no good old green earth. Never thought I'd miss Portsmouth like this."

"Look on the bright side, sir. Portsmouth hasn't got a pub to match this, or I'm a Frenchman."

Piett turned and leaned against the bar. The architects had considerately made the bar height standard for most species, though there was an 8 foot wide section on the other side that was built taller to accommodate Wookiees and other exceptionally tall species. 

“I think they’re taking all this remarkably well,” he commented to the General who joined him, turning to lean his elbows on the bar behind him. 

“Given that I still come to this kriffing planet and have to adjust to how appalling it is, they absolutely are,” Veers agreed. 

“I like this pub,” Piett said, inhaling. “Why haven’t we come here before?”

“I have,” Veers pointed out, “but I also try to avoid being here at all so….despite its merits, I have no desire to come here just for the pubs.”

Piett grinned at his friend as their drinks were delivered.

“Fair enough. Given how many times we’ve been shot at here….”

“Do _not _just….honestly, Firmus, I was trying to avoid mentioning that!” Veers moaned as they made their way to the table with the two British officers.__

____

____

"Mentioning what?" Hornblower asked, mischief in his eyes.

Piett chuckled and set their pints down. “We don’t care for this planet all that much…”

“It’s part of the Corellian hells,” murmured Veers aside.

“Because,” Piett continued, kicking at the Generals ankle under the table, “some ah…. _unfortunate _things have occurred when we have come in the past.”__

____

____

"Well, I can't say I care for it either," Bush said. "I don't need trouble to know it's not natural. No earth, no sea. Nothing but sky and steel. I like both of those well enough, mind you, but not to build a city of."

“He understands!” Veers said, pointing triumphantly with his glass.

Hornblower cleared his throat. "I must say I agree with Bush," he said. "You say this entire planet is a single city?"

“Yes,” Piett agreed, taking an appreciative pull at the Alderranian ale. Yes, the planet was gone, but the Wookiees had taken it upon themselves to cultivate the remaining hops found in a few other planets in order to keep the taste alive in the galaxy. He silently saluted his princess.

“It’s been built up over the millenia and now it’s completely covered. I agree with you, Captain Bush. Give me a Star Destroyer and a star to steer her by any time.”

"A Star Destroyer? Is that anything like what we would call a ship of the line?" Hornblower asked.

Piett produced his datapad from somewhere and Veers suppressed a groan. He had sensed this connection back at the auditorium.

“Hmmm,” Piett said, typing rapidly. “Ah. Yes! That is precisely what the correlation would be, Admiral. I wonder….” Veers watched the gleam bloom in his friend’s eyes. “Perhaps you will have time in your stay to come and see my Lady. I confess I would do a great deal to stand on the deck of your ship, sir. I have quite a love for sailing you see…”

Veers kicked his friend’s ankle.

"It would be my pleasure, sir," Hornblower replied courteously. "And I have no doubt that Captain Bush would thoroughly enjoy giving you a tour of _Nonsuch._ But that reminds me that you said something rather curious about the _Executor_ while we were discussing your predecessor's unfortunate style of command."

Veers and Piett shared a look.

“Let’s just say that….I can’t really explain this either,” Piett stated after a beat. “But, the Lady is…..special. I know that we Captains and Admirals talk about communing with our ships. The Lady…..understands.”

The import of this statement took a moment to sink in, but then the two British officers opened their mouths and began to speak at exactly the same time. They cut themselves off a moment later, looking somewhat embarrassed, and Bush gestured for Hornblower to speak first. "Your ship understands you? That was what you meant when you said she locked Admiral Ozzel out of his quarters?"

Piett nodded, taking another drink while Veers smiled into his glass.

“Our Lady has a wonderful sense of humor. And taste in commanding officers.”

Piett flushed and held his glass out for the General to gently tap his against.

"Is...the Lady...a Star Destroyer?"”

“She is,” Piett answered calmly, watching the other men.

"Wonderful," Bush said almost reverently. "I hope we can stay long enough to see her."

"So do I," Hornblower answered. "Though I fear your promised tour of our commands, should it come to pass, would be rather an anticlimax after a ship that sails the stars. Speaking of which, how, exactly…" He trailed off. "How does one sail above the air?" he finally managed, though he did not seem entirely satisfied with the question.

Piett smiled. “I like that description. I’m not entirely sure which civilization first took us to the stars as most claim to have done so. But it involves some impressive engines and technology that my chief engineer would be most happy to explain. I must confess sir, a tall ship is not in the least anticlimactic. I had the privilege of sailing on one many years ago as part of an undercover operation. And there is something about the wood under your feet and the smell of salt in the air…..”

Veers sighed and went to order another round.

The unguarded grin Hornblower was wearing made him look almost boyish in his delight. "I would never have expected to meet a man of the seas in a place like this, sir," he said happily. "But I have yet to find any challenge to match the maneuvers of a sea battle or any happiness on land that can match the freedom of the sea."

"Or the satisfaction of a well-laid broadside," Bush put in, wearing a grin of his own.

“Exactly,” Piett nodded, sitting forward a bit, and leaning over his glass. “There was something rather pleasing to the soul in using one’s own hands to haul in a cable and climb the rigging to work with the sails.”

Veers returned with more beer and gave his friend a longsuffering though fond look as their guests looked at him in thorough approval.

"I've always admired men who took easily to that labour," Hornblower said, shaking his head. "I'm afraid I was a rather clumsy midshipman, and afraid of heights to boot. I got over it in the end, of course -- not much choice about that in the Navy -- but I was always more at home with my feet on the decks. Bush, now, I am convinced could do any man's work in the ship as well or better than anyone else."

Captain Bush looked rather taken aback at that, and hid his embarrassment behind his glass. "That's as may be, sir," he said when he reemerged, "though I'd never make a navigator and you know it. But when it comes to strategy, sir, you outclass me and every man in the Navy, in my opinion."

Piett realized that these men, while not saying it with words, had a friendship that he understood. He shot Veers a swift glance.

The General smiled back. “Tell me more about broadsides, Captain,” he said, accepting that they were apparently here for naval discussion. “Because that topic sounds like one I can understand a bit more.”

"A good broadside is what you get when you've drilled your gun crews properly," Bush said, obviously pleased at the request, "and they can fire all the cannon on one side all together, and hit what they're aiming at. They're best used at close range, but the better your crew the further off you can be. Done right, they'll tear right through the ship you're fighting and dismast her. Then there's either boarding parties, or a surrender then and there."

Hornblower smiled briefly at his comment on range, and Veers sensed an old topic of discussion, but the man made no comments.

Piett grimaced at the ‘dismasting’ comment. “Brutal, sir. Pains me to think of that.”

Veers nodded. “Close range artillery is not something to be messed with, whether your ship is wood or durasteel.”

Hornblower nodded too. "I have often wondered how one can reconcile the satisfaction of a successful battle with the damage dealt," he said, "and come to no conclusion but that it simply must be done, and my feelings on the matter are irrelevant to that necessity."

Piett held the other man’s gaze and Veers watched that moment of complete understanding pass between the two Admirals. 

He could see that Bush had noted this moment as well.

“Captain,” he said, “I wonder if you might have a similar problem to myself. Because in all those moments of doing what is necessary, which we all can of course relate to, I also find that one of my chief duties is keeping our Admiral in one piece.”

He ignored the huff next to him in favor of watching the rugged face of the other man, and saw immediate understanding there, combined with a certain awkwardness. Bush cleared his throat, a gesture that he had probably picked up from Hornblower judging by how often the other man did it, and said, "My first duty is to my commanding officer, sir, always. And I've yet to meet a man I'd rather serve under than Admiral Hornblower."

It was Hornblower's turn to hide his face behind his ale and gather his thoughts. "Well, Captain Bush, I can certainly say to be forced to work with anyone else would be an irritation after all this time."

Veers snorted openly as Bush smiled (though he quickly stifled the expression). He had worked with Fox for long enough to interpret this little speech. Hornblower would die for this man in a Kessel second.

“Despite the General having some truly breathtaking cheek,” Piett put in, giving Veers a stern hazel stare, which he returned unrepentantly, “I will confess that he has been the most steadfast friend a man could ask for.”

Trust Piett to hit whang in the heart. Veers took a cue from Hornblower and buried his face in his glass.

"Ha-hm," Hornblower said. "Well. I believe that it is time for us to return to our ship, gentlemen. This has been a genuine pleasure," and he looked at Piett with a smile, "and I hope to meet you again, and perhaps be introduced to your Lady."

All of the officers rose, retrieving caps and straightening their uniforms.

"And both of you will always be welcome on board _Nonsuch,_ " Bush added.

The four of them shook hands.

They stepped out of the "Homeward Light" together, and were met by a small, neat speeder parked by the kerb. Q waved to them from the wheel and M from the passenger seat. "Hop in, gentlemen," Q said cheerfully. "We'll see you back to your respective worlds safely. General, Admiral Piett, we could make a stop by the spaceport first as well. There's room if you don't mind being a little squished."

Piett and Veers exchanged a look. “Well,” the Admiral mused, “neither Solo nor Lord Vader is piloting. What could go wrong?”

“Firmus,” Veers sighed, as they all boarded. “Those are _terrible _words to use here.”__

____

____

Q overheard him and grinned mischievously. "Don't worry, I know how to drive. And I promise I haven't modified the speeder at all. Besides, M and I have something to say about when there's trouble, and I'm pretty sure there won't be any tonight."

“Most definitely not,” M agreed emphatically, turning slightly to look at their passengers. “Plenty of that to c----ow!” Q looked at her innocently, but someone’s foot had contacted someone’s shin. “Um, I mean, enjoy the ride, gentlemen!”

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Dealing with Difficult Doctors](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28460271) by [mathmusic8](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mathmusic8/pseuds/mathmusic8)




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